Valmet
in ex-farm condition at the Bath and Southwest Tractor show 2009]] Valmet (originally Valtion Metallitehtaat'' - State Metalworks) was formed in 1951, when the country of Finland decided to group their various factories working on war reparations to the Soviet Union under one company. Valmet and the factories within the group produce a wide array of products including aeroplanes, auto- and locomotives, weapons manufacturing and everyday household appliances. Numerous parts of the company have since been sold or merged with other companies specializing in their own fields of trade and manufacture. Valmet itself is now a brand of '''Metso Corporation. Tractors have been produced by Valmet, both in Brazil and Finland. The brand name now in use is Valtra. The tractor business, though still located in Finland, is owned by AGCO. Valmet not a well-known brand in the UK market. History (More info on them required) on the Duncombe Park Estate in North Yorkshire]] Valmet started manufacturing tractors after the end of the World War II, building up slowly to have produced 3000 tractors by 1955, in former armaments factories. The First tractors being single cylinder12hp models. this was followed by a For cylinder model in 1953. By 1955 they had built 3,000 tractors. Then a 37 horsepower model with a 3-cylinder 2.7ltr engine was introduced in 1957, called the 33D. Valmet sold 1,000 tractors to Brazil in 1960 before opening a local factory in Brazil in 1962, using a MWM engine built under license. By 1971, the 20,000th Brazilian-built Valmet was produced. This then shot up to a 100,000 by 1978. Valmet Brazil (Valtra Brazil) became the market leader in the 100 hp + market, and a successful maker of alcohol fueled tractors, with a lot of ethanol-powered vehicles in Brazil. Valmet introduced a new model in Europe with a Case designed gearbox called the 864. Forestry tractors with saftey cabs were introduced, as well. Also Valmet introduced something new, a synchromesh gearbox fitted to a 49 hp Valmet 565 tractor. In 1979, Valmet signed an agreement with Volvo, taking over Volvo Tractors' business, (marketed under the Volvo, Volvo BM and BM Volvo brands). The new jointly developed tractors were then marketed as Volvo BM Valmet from 1979-1986.http://www.valtra.com/news/press/3331.asp In 1985, Valmet bought out Volvo's share of the joint venture, and the tractors were again marketed as Valmet. Production reached 300,000 by 1989. In the late 1990 they supplied engines for French-built Massey Ferguson models to AGCO, and received M-F chassis and transmissions for some larger models. After Valmet was acquired by Sisu in 1994, Valmet was split up, and the Valmet name could only be used until 2001. The tractors were renamed Valtra Valmet for three years from 1997–2000, with the final change to Valtra in 2001.http://www.valtra.com/Com/Commonfiles/history/framesetHistory.asp?country=eng&index=0 The tractor business, though still located in Finland, is now owned by AGCO, (with Valtra having been sold to AGCO in 2004.http://www.valtra.agcocorp.com/default.cfm/PID=1.8) Model Range Valmet Volvo BM Valmet Valtra Valmet Tractors built by Valmet for other companies ;Forestry machinery * Valmet Jehu 1122 - Timber forwarder (uses bogie from the 1502 tractor) Current Models * see Valtra Preserved Machines Are there any more of these on the rally circuit ? (please add details of any known examples) * Valmet 805 was at the Bath and Southwest Tractor show in 2009 (photo above) * One example of the 6-WD Valmet 1502 is at the factory awaiting restoration. * A Valmet 455 is in use on the Duncombe Park Estate in Yorkshire on forestry work. See also *AGCO for current models *Massey Ferguson *Metso *Valtra *Volvo References *Wikipedia - for base article *Classic Tractors of the World by Nick Baldwin, ISBN 0-89658-394-5 *The World Encyclopaedia of Tractors & Farm Machinery by John Carroll, ISBN 0-7548-0357-0 Category:Valtra Category:Valmet Category:Tractor manufacturers of Finland Category:Tractor manufacturers of Brazil Category:Brands Category:Tractor brands Category:Merged companies Category:Special Purpose tractors Category:Vineyard tractors Category:Companies founded in 1951 Category:Tractor importers Category:Companies of Finland